'Completely unacceptable': Quebec refuses to expand exemptions for Indigenous students at English CEGEPs

No exemptions for Indigenous CEGEP students The CAQ government has no plans to offer Indigenous students any further relief from Bill 96 requirements.

Quebec City — The François Legault government has no plans to offer Indigenous students any further relief from the requirements of the new Charter of the French Language.

In a letter addressed to Premier François Legault, a copy of which was obtained by The Canadian Press on Wednesday, five English-language CEGEPs cite the "urgent need for action."

They ask the government to find a solution to better support Indigenous students, otherwise, they say, many of them will go to Ontario institutions or abandon their studies altogether.

On Wednesday, Indigenous Affairs Minister Ian Lafrenière Higher Education Minister Pascale Déry reiterated that they had already made adjustments to accommodate the specific needs of these students.

Since last year, First Nations students attending English-language CEGEPs have been exempt from the uniform French test. Soon, they will also be able to take three French courses rather than three courses in French.

"For the time being, the regulatory relief we have is the regulatory relief we're talking about," Déry summed up in a press scrum at the Quebec legislature.

For his part, the Minister responsible for the French language, Jean-François Roberge, invited English-language CEGEPs to "reconcile themselves with reality."

"I think they're mistaken, because they've misunderstood what we've done," he said. "We've adopted regulations that give them roughly the same exemptions as the historic English-speaking community."

But the five English-language CEGEPs deplore the fact that the terms of the Charter of the French Language impose "multiple systemic and discriminatory barriers" on Indigenous students.

"We urge the Quebec government today to take the full measure of the situation and engage in constructive dialogue with the Indigenous communities without delay," they wrote.

The letter is co-signed by the executive directors of Dawson College, John Abbott College, Vanier College, Heritage College and Champlain College.

An application for judicial review to challenge Bill 96 was filed by the First Nations Education Council (FNEC) and the Assembly of First Nations of Quebec-Labrador (AFNQL) in the spring of 2023.

CAQ fails to get a passing grade, says AFNQL

At a press conference at the National Assembly on Wednesday, AFNQL Chief Ghislain Picard described the situation as "completely unacceptable."

"We're getting the message from English-language CEGEPs, and it actually confirms the concerns we've already expressed," he said, before revealing the results of the Coalition avenir Québec (CAQ) "report card."

After analyzing 12 "critical areas," the AFNQL concluded that Legault's government only deserves grades ranging from C to F, which is "insufficient to obtain an overall passing grade."

For example, the First Nations chiefs recognize that the government has tried to increase their involvement in "economic recovery," and for this they give it a C. On the other hand, the government continues to refuse to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and to set up a Permanent Parliamentary Forum, for which it receives an F.

On health, the CAQ tabled a bill on cultural securitization in June 2023, but this bill "does not meet expectations and has not been subject to an acceptable consultation process."

On this issue, the AFNQL believes the government deserves a D.

"We still have the impression of having to deal with a government that has a very, very colonialist attitude, both in its ways of doing things and in its ideology," Chief Picard said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on June 5, 2024.